Bear Factshttps://www.lzbearfacts.com
Lake Zurich High School Student MediaWed, 21 Feb 2018 03:38:20 +0000en-UShourly1https://wordpress.org/?v=4.9.4The 2018 job fair: who will be there, what they want, and how to get hiredhttps://www.lzbearfacts.com/news/2018/02/20/the-2018-job-fair-who-will-be-there-what-they-want-and-how-to-get-hired/
https://www.lzbearfacts.com/news/2018/02/20/the-2018-job-fair-who-will-be-there-what-they-want-and-how-to-get-hired/#respondWed, 21 Feb 2018 03:38:20 +0000https://www.lzbearfacts.com/?p=12352The fourth annual job fair will be held this Friday, February 23 to give students the opportunity to get a job without even leaving school.

31 local business are coming to school to hire students of all grade levels from 8am-2:30pm. The event will be held in the library, and students will be able to stop by during periods 1-8 to tour jobs and possibly be hired on spot.

“We try to choose employers that are employing a lot of students, places that will give a large number of opportunities,” Jeanette Greco, Career Mentor, said. “They’re all looking to hire, so they’re going to use this as an opportunity to speak to the student, like a pre interview.”

In order to get the job you’re looking for, Greco suggests coming prepared for a pre-interview. Different businesses will be stationed around the library and students will be able to visit the tables they want, with employers possibly making their decisions on who to hire at the event itself.

“Come prepared by being able to answer questions, look at people when you’re talking and speak directly,” Greco said. “Take it seriously, because the employers are.”

Sheila Jennings, Employer for Goodwill, said at the 2016 job fair that she was looking for students to take the event seriously as well.

“We’re looking for people who are energetic and eager,” said Jennings. “If you have a smile coming up to our booth, that is something that really stands out to us.”

Besides standing out, the job fair also has benefits that reach beyond just getting a job, according to Greco.

“Not to mention the extra cash in your pocket, it also does teach you responsibility and how to deal with people situations, to get you out of your norm,” said Greco. “[It] gives youexperience for the future and teaches you a lot of life experiences, so please come.”

]]>https://www.lzbearfacts.com/uncategorized/2018/02/20/girls-basketball-dominates-stevenson-in-class-4a-sectional/feed/0School to celebrate student voice and Scholastic Journalismhttps://www.lzbearfacts.com/news/2018/02/19/school-to-celebrate-student-voice-and-scholastic-journalism/
https://www.lzbearfacts.com/news/2018/02/19/school-to-celebrate-student-voice-and-scholastic-journalism/#respondTue, 20 Feb 2018 04:06:03 +0000https://www.lzbearfacts.com/?p=12357As little as 19% of Americans actually know the first amendment, according to a Newseum Institute survey. In order to combat that lack of knowledge, the nation-wide student press and free speech campaign, Scholastic Journalism Week, is celebrated, according to Meggie Furlong, senior and Web Editor-in-Chief of Bear Facts Student Media.

For the week of February 18-24, Scholastic Journalism Week’s theme is “Student Choice, Student Voice.” During this week, the journalism students want to bring awareness not only to the program itself, but also to the rights that everyone is granted as a citizen of the United States, according to Furlong.

“As a journalism program we are fighting to keep those [rights] and to keep the voices of the students heard,” Furlong said. “That’s what our job is–to keep [student’s] opinions out there.”

Although this year’s theme is “Student Choice, Student Voice,” many students don’t recognize the rights they have as citizens, including the First Amendment, which includes the freedom of speech and press, according to Jessica Baltes, freshman.

“I know my First Amendment obviously, however, a lot of kids don’t, and they think it’s just something you learn in social studies class,” Baltes said. “And no one ever thinks to associate the amendments with something like journalism.”

Additionally, since some students are unaware of all that scholastic journalists do, the week is also to educate people more about their rights and the Journalism program as a whole, according to Megan Monoson, senior and Magazine Editor-in-Chief of Bear Facts Student Media.

“I think it’s just a good time where we can just inform people [of the program],” Monoson said. “And [it’s] not just a single day, [so] then people will actually realize our presence and realize that we’re there,”

The journalism students will be raffling off prize baskets during the lunch periods, have morning announcements throughout the week, will have a “penny war” between the two Journalism classes, and will give out candy to those who make donations, Furlong said.

“Half [of the money raised] t is going to go to the [Student Press Law Center], and half to [Bear Facts] so we can keep producing the best publication we can,” Monoson said.

Overall the staff of Bear Facts are very optimistic about the week to come, according to Monoson.

“I’m looking forward to [Scholastic Journalism week] and it will be really cool,” Monoson said, “[I’m] especially [looking forward] to see how the students react and how the student body and the community reacts to how we present journalism.”

]]>https://www.lzbearfacts.com/news/2018/02/19/school-to-celebrate-student-voice-and-scholastic-journalism/feed/0Students of all ages take part in District 95’s sixth annual Film Festivalhttps://www.lzbearfacts.com/news/2018/02/19/students-from-all-different-ages-take-part-in-district-95s-sixth-film-festival/
https://www.lzbearfacts.com/news/2018/02/19/students-from-all-different-ages-take-part-in-district-95s-sixth-film-festival/#respondTue, 20 Feb 2018 00:51:04 +0000https://www.lzbearfacts.com/?p=12358The sixth annual District 95 Film Festival took place on February 13 and boasted winners of all ages.

The festival brought students of K-12 from all around District 95 to produce a video for one of the 5 categories; comedy, drama, PSA, animation, and documentary.

“I think the Film Festival is a really great event because it brings the whole district together to display certain individual’s talents and it’s just entertaining for anyone who attends,” Rachel Moore, junior and 3rd place winner of LZHS said.

Contestant’s videos were analyzed after the video submission deadline, January 26. Within that time, judges were able to choose winners of the night.

The overall winners, Grace and Dean Lambertsen, sophomore and senior, respectively, had participated in the contest before, but had always tried a more light-hearted approach to their films. However, this year, the Lambersten’s said that they took a more serious route with their winning film, “Looking Up.”

“It feels really good [to win]. We’ve been really doing funny [films] a lot, so [we said] ‘let’s try to do something more difficult this year.’ So we did artsy and I guess it really paid off,” Grace said.

Many were also surprised about the age range of the contestants besides the winners and were attentive to what their fellow participants could pull out of their sleeves.

“I have never been to the film festival in the past, but having experienced it this year, I really liked the fact that films were created by students of all ages. It was awesome seeing the variety of content produced,”Blake Rowell, junior and 3rd place winner for LZHS, said.“[ The festival was] a great opportunity for students to showcase their works and get recognition for their passion.”

]]>https://www.lzbearfacts.com/news/2018/02/19/students-from-all-different-ages-take-part-in-district-95s-sixth-film-festival/feed/0Joanie’s Closet holds Valentine’s Dance and raises $10,000 for the organizationhttps://www.lzbearfacts.com/news/2018/02/16/joanies-closet-holds-valentines-dance-to-raise-money-for-the-organization/
https://www.lzbearfacts.com/news/2018/02/16/joanies-closet-holds-valentines-dance-to-raise-money-for-the-organization/#respondFri, 16 Feb 2018 22:01:23 +0000https://www.lzbearfacts.com/?p=12367A District 95 charity hosted a parent/child Valentine’s Dance on at May Whitney last Saturday, February 10 and raised $10,000 for the organization.

Joanie’s Closet is a non profit organization looking to help under-resourced families in Lake Zurich. The Valentine’s Parent / Child dance allows for parents and children, grades K-8, to have a fun on a Saturday while still giving back to their community.

“The Valentines Dance is not only a fun activity for families in the community but it’s the main fundraiser that supports our organization,” Ann McConnell, Joanie’s Closet Middle School South Representative, said.

“We use the money we raise for our initiatives to help the under resourced students and their families in district 95. Two of [Joanie’s Closet] expenses are our school supply initiative, which happens right before school starts in the fall,” Donna Young, co-chair, said. “In years past we’ve supplied over 330 school supply kits to students in need. Our second largest initiative is our winter coats initiative, where we supply brand new winter coats, hats, and gloves to students in need and their families.”

There were a lot of preparations that are made to make this dance successful, and finding volunteers, from parents to high schoolers, is just one of those steps, McConnell said.

“We live in a community with lots of wonderful volunteers,” McConnell said. “We are fortunate enough that many parents, high school, and middle school students give their time to help make this event a success.”

While this dance does provide a fun and charitable night for the families that attend, it also allows volunteers like DJ Young, senior, who has been working this event for five years and is now helping run the event, have fun allow with the families.

“I’ve never chaired the event, but I’d always had been there, so seeing the work that has been done and all the people signed up is making me like, it’s a new perspective. I used to just be [volunteering], but now I’m helping the people that actually run it, [and] helping them get volunteers,” DJ Young said. “It’s pretty rewarding; it feels good after helping, being with the organization for so long and to actually give back to it now.”

This Parent / Child dance is one of Joanie’s Closet’s main fundraisers and contributors to the organization, but it has not always been around, only recently has the dance been created to help fund the under resourced families in Lake Zurich, according to Young.

“When Joanie’s Closet didn’t have a major fundraiser, the committee was trying to think of different ways to earn funds in order to provide the services that Joanie’s Closet does to serve our under-resourced students,” Young said. “My cousin that lives south in Michigan, she told me that their school did [the dance]. It was actually a father-daughter dance out in Michigan, and she told me what she did and how they raised money and I thought, that is a fantastic idea.”

The cheer team will be hosting the clinic on February 15 for young aspiring cheerleaders in the district. The clinic is split into two groups, K-5 and middle schoolers, and around 30-40 youth cheerleaders are expected to attend.

“A lot of younger kids look up to high school cheerleaders. We have little kids come up to them all the time and want to give them a hug or just say hi ,” RachaelFischer, cheercoach, said. “It gives [the kids] an opportunity to work with [the cheerleaders] and learn from them. They’re role models.”

Haley Eder, senior cheerleader, has helped run the clinic for the past few years and she knows the influence that role models can provide in cheer.

“When I was younger there was a ton of cheer clinics I did at my school [so] now it’s weird to see [the kids] in the position I was in a long time ago,” Eder said.

Since Eder has been in both positions of cheer clinics she understands the value and purpose in them. For herself, clinics like the one offered at the school have bettered her cheer skills and inspired her to go further with cheer, she said.

“For one it’s cute seeing all the little kids, but most importantly I love to see the improvement they make [throughout] the years. Some improve so much with just one clinic,” Eder said. “It’s so cool to see how far they’ll be in a short time span.”

]]>https://www.lzbearfacts.com/sports/2018/02/13/cheer-team-helps-aspiring-cheerleaders-through-clinics/feed/0Snow better way to spend your time than Ski Clubhttps://www.lzbearfacts.com/features/2018/02/12/snow-better-way-to-spend-your-time-than-ski-club/
https://www.lzbearfacts.com/features/2018/02/12/snow-better-way-to-spend-your-time-than-ski-club/#respondTue, 13 Feb 2018 02:28:19 +0000https://www.lzbearfacts.com/?p=12303There’s only one club in the school that comes close to flying in the wintertime.

“There’s students who really enjoy skiing and it provides an extra opportunity with them to get together with different people… so it’s a social gathering club,” Craig Lehigh, co-sponsor of ski club, said. “They have fun regardless of grade and ability levels.”

Cori Robinson, sophomore ski club member, is one of those students who finds joy in flying down the slopes to help her relieve stress from school and get together with friends.

“Skiing is an outlet where I can find a peace of mind and escape the stress of homework and tests,” Robinson said. “Putting on my holographic ski goggles and the feel of strong gusts of wind in my hair as I practically fly down a treacherous blue square slopes is the rush of adrenaline that gives me a sense of freedom.”

Whereas Robinson enjoys the flying sensation, Morgan Marguerite, sophomore, has grown up loving skiing but lost the time to enjoy this passion in high school.

“I decided to join ski club because I’ve been skiing since I was six years old. I don’t get to go very often anymore and when this opportunity came I couldn’t let it go. So I talked to another friend of mine, and he and I decided to join because we love it,” Marguerite said. “The overall atmosphere is great and the people are great. It’s the perfect way to do something you love while being involved at school.”

According to Marguerite, she tends to shy away from sports that has never tried before. However, she feels that she benefits from joining the club.

“I believe that ski club has made me better because I stepped out of my comfort zone. I gave it another try and it turned out to be awesome,” Marguerite said. “I think if more people tried new things like ski club they could see what they are really interested in.”

According to Lehigh, the Ski Club typically heads to Devil’s head Resort, Wilmot Mountain, and Alpine Valley Resort. Trips are a full day and “students are free to roam”, says Lehigh. The next trip is February 9th to Alpine Valley Resort.

“It’s an awesome way to get involved with the school,” said Marguerite. “Even if they haven’t had much experience with skiing, it’s a great way to see if you have a passion for it.”

]]>https://www.lzbearfacts.com/features/2018/02/12/snow-better-way-to-spend-your-time-than-ski-club/feed/0Boys’ and girls’ bowling teams achieve victories at regionals and sectionalshttps://www.lzbearfacts.com/sports/2018/02/12/boys-and-girls-bowling-teams-achieve-victories-at-regionals-and-sectionals/
https://www.lzbearfacts.com/sports/2018/02/12/boys-and-girls-bowling-teams-achieve-victories-at-regionals-and-sectionals/#respondTue, 13 Feb 2018 02:22:50 +0000https://www.lzbearfacts.com/?p=12311The bowling teams have drawn attention this season, with one team rolling to state and the other to regionals.

The boys bowling team coached by Michael Sutton had placed 5th atState, while the girls team led by coach Mel Fox placed third at regionals and will be playing at sectionals in Arlington Heights Sunday. Teams faced tough opponents and tight scores this season but pushed through the challenges with the help of coaches and other players, according to teammates.

“Obviously everybody would like to place higher than our conference rivals and we did that, but the teams that are in it to win it every year are Honenega and Harlem, so we kind of knew who the big dogs were. We have a saying on the team and it’s take one shot at a time, I always tell them, we’re not competing against the team, we’re competing against the pins,” Sutton said.

The same challenges were faced by the girls according to Fox, who also talked about how the team handled tough situations.

“We all know what we have to do, we don’t always tell the girls [the score] because we don’t want them to get stressed, but they know if we’ve bowled a good game, [with an] 800s 900s game they know we’re in contention. Last year we only won by five or six shots, but all you need to win is by one,” Fox said.

Even though the score can be close and stressful at times, players remained calm and cheerful, according to Eric Reusch, senior bowler, the teams were set apart from the others schools’ because of the strong spirit and support.

“[Mr. Sutton] is an outgoing guy, he really has helped bring us together and is a core part of the team. [The team] will definitely still bond together and keep playing well, we’re all such good friends,” Reusch said, “Next year, I see the team doing just fine, I mean we’re only losing two players next year. We went to the eighth grade to introduce them to all of the high school clubs and sports, and we got quite a few signatures.”

However, some girls worry for the future of their team, and say how the team is struggling to find a balance between a strong team environment and being a larger team with a secure future.

“I feel like the team is very successful as it is with such a small amount of people, but it would be good to have people come in. I feel like it’s a lot ofrepetition, and we are winning with that repetition, but four out of the five varsity players are seniors, six of our entire team are seniors, so we’re losing almost half of our team next year. I feel like if we don’t have more people come in then the team might die off,” Lilliana Perez, freshman bowler, said.

The team’s coach does not fear however, and says the team has a bright future.

“We should be just as competitive next year, we have good JV players with experience coming back,” Fox said. “With the dedication of these girls we will be competitive with other schools in our conference, hopefully the younger girls will step up next year.”

Awareness is the main topic being discussed at the self-defense session, Tracey Goodyear, owner of Lake Zurich Family Martial Arts and an instructor of the self-defense class, says.

“[The class] is all about awareness and being safe on campus,” Goodyear said. “We also practice body awareness and body control. It’s mainly about being aware of your surroundings and how to stay safe if you’re walking by yourself, especially if you’re coming home from a party alone, since the structure of walking home is different than what you grew up with.”

Despite the fact that Lauren Salit, senior, is running the event for National Honor Society and not signing up as a student, she says she is hoping that she can apply what she learns on Sunday while at college next year and in the near future.

“I think the knowledge and techniques learned from the class will be very valuable on a college campus next year,” Salit said. “I hope to be able to have the knowledge of what I need to do if self-defense becomes necessary in college and/or in life.”

In order for the female upperclassmen to gain this valuable knowledge about campus safety, Goodyear says that she hopes parents encourage their girls to attend the class.

“This is the first time that I’m aware of the high school putting on such a program,” Goodyear said. “For the first time, I would love to have 300 students. However, I don’t know if we’ll get there, so I would be very satisfied if we got 50 girls to attend this first session. Sometimes it’s reaching the parents to show that there’s a need. A lot of times the young ladies aren’t thinking of the campus safety like the parents are.”

NHS recognizes the importance of the self-defense session, Salit says, so she was put in charge of spreading the word about the inaugural clinic being offered to other students.

“I learned about it from NHS,” Salit said. “Allie VanZant and I are chairing this event for the club. It’s a new event this year so we tried to spread the word as best we could by putting posters up and having Mr. Krause email all the upperclass ladies eligible for the event.”

While every girl may not be interested in attending the class this Sunday, Goodyear encourages them to take it with the sole hope of putting their parents at ease.

“Ideally, my hope is that the parents are aware of what’s being taught and the student that’s going off to college hears about the program being offered,” Goodyear said. “I always say, ‘If you don’t want to take the class for yourself, at least take it for the sake of your parents. Give them the peace of mind that they did everything they could to empower you to go off to college.’”

Since Salit did not attend a District 95 middle school, she never participated in a self-defense class, which she says is another reason to pay attention to what’s being taught.

“This is my first time having anything to do with self-defense,” Salit said.

No matter how many kids show up this Sunday, Goodyear says she is glad that she is able to help instruct this valuable class and hopes that the session will be around for years to come.

“I think that it’s great that District 95 and the staff at LZHS are willing to help put on this program for these young ladies, and I’m hoping that this partnership between Lake Zurich Family Martial Arts and LZHS is something we can continue for years to come,” Goodyear said.